Today the Labor family mourns one of our great sons. 

Nick Bolkus came to public life as a young man, with a young man’s idealism and sense of urgency, and he held true to those principles and that sense of purpose right through his long and distinguished career. 

Fittingly for the first Greek Australian to serve as a Cabinet Minister, Nick Bolkus was a passionate believer in democracy and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

In every portfolio he served he sought to reform the instruments and power of government to better serve the aspirations and rights of everyday Australians. 

As Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs and then Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Nick was both a strong advocate for the benefits and contribution of modern, multicultural Australia and a compelling example of how our nation has been enriched by people of every background and tradition. 

Nick Bolkus loved his home state in that fiercely proud way South Australians do and his family and his community knew they could always find him at Joe’s kiosk at Henley Beach.

Our love and sympathy to Nick’s family, friends and loved ones. His memory will love long in Labor hearts. 

May Nick Bolkus rest in eternal peace